I must pre-frame this by stating that I am by no means a medical professional and all comments in this article should not be taken as such, and are simply derived from experiences and observations developed through my own personal story of those I’ve been blessed to have worked with, writes Jake Putan.

There are many by-products of how mental health will transform the industry, from increased staff retention, price increases, diversification of education, business re-development and scaling, but for the sake of this article let’s frame it around the individual and our responsibility with our own daily mental health.

During 2017 to 2018, while being involved with a majority of hair events, in contracts with major brands, speaking on stage and featuring in various magazines, I soon after made a decision to somewhat remove my presence from the industry. I felt lost and without clear direction about where I was headed. I felt empty in who I was becoming since my identity was entirely made up of titles and associations but carried no substance.

Sure, my ego had been fed dopamine hits in the temporariness of a moment on stage or in public recognition, but within 24hrs these events were over. The highs had come and I felt the equal lows to match. These lows catalysed a significant turning point and an extensive journey of learning how (and why) to prioritise my personal needs and mental health first before agreeing to take as many shiny objects as I could find.

I set out to find peace in what I truly cared about that I could work towards daily that would make an integral difference within the lives of the people we serve as hairstylists, and what genuine change we can collectively create within in the industry. I began to look at my own experiences, reflecting on all of these events to learn about why I had become filled with such negative thoughts and feelings and how to support others experiencing similar confusion.

After seeking professional help, attending self-development retreats, investing in courses and mentoring to build my understanding of what I needed (mentally and emotionally) plus what I wanted to create (physically) for others, I began sharing my learnings with clients about what I was doing to prioritise my mental health. They soon were asking to meet privately outside the salon to talk about what they were also going through. Without even offering anything else but connection, the result of someone simply having space to be heard without judgement was utterly transformative to how people were feeling.

The negative thoughts and feelings had simply grown out of being in a space that lacked connection. How often have we just thrown money at mental health, when someone just required connection? How often have we given someone a pay rise and they ended up leaving because it wasn’t money they craved?

By offering spaces of connection, we have the power to transform the mental health of ourselves as well as the individuals in our team and those we serve – resulting in higher workplace productivity, greater fulfilment of work, higher staff retention, client satisfaction, and more effective business structures based on the collective input of the team.

During 2022, as a collective summary of this work, I began increasing the priority for my mental health, showing up for myself first so I could give more effectively to others, then seeing where this resulted in more fulfilling engagements in every area of my work. Specifically, it helped me birth the vision to support business owners in also finding their ‘why’, reconstructing this demonstration of leadership that individuals seemed to be requiring and to develop spaces of connection. I began working directly with a business owner in Newcastle to initiate this model. The business owner is currently actively transforming her business and her team whilst building out her own workshops, thriving within a period where I’ve seen so many other hair salons and barbershops left to close down. This vision is called Legacy Education.

As I prioritise my mental health to understand how to transform my inner state as well as extend this message to whomever may read, I’m more interested than ever in encouraging others to find their ‘why’ and create spaces of connection within our personal and business relationships. This empowers us to make a difference for all those in our teams and extended communities, and all starts with what we do each morning, I feel internally fulfilled knowing that I get to work towards a purpose daily, that is so authentic to me.

When individuals have the space to allow their voice to be heard and their personal needs met, with understanding, compassion and connection, without judgement or the old school dictatorship mentality, we will completely shift our industry across the board.

That’s the peace we’ve been missing.

That’s the new standard of leadership we will see flourish.

That’s the legacy I wish to leave.

For more information email admin@jakeputan.com

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